43rd Mechanized Brigade (Netherlands)
| 43 Mechanized Brigade | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | July 1949–present |
| Country |
 Netherlands |
| Branch | Royal Netherlands Army |
| Type | Mechanized Infantry |
| Size | 3500 personnel, including 1000 reservists |
| Colors | Red & Blue |
| Mascot | Bison |
| Engagements | War in Afghanistan |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Brigadier General Martin Wijnen |
43 Mechanized Brigade (Dutch: 43 Gemechaniseerde Brigade) is one of the three brigades of the Royal Netherlands Army. The others being the 13th Motorized Brigade and 11th Airmobile Brigade. The brigade has armored and non-armored vehicles to its disposal. The brigade can be used for combat operations, peacekeeping and ceremonial tasks.[1]
In September 2015 was announced that 43 Mechanized Brigade will be integrated since 2019 in the 1. DEU Panzerdivision.
The German 414 tank battalion will become one of the units in 43 Mechanized Brigade. In this battalion one of the companies will be Dutch manned, with 18 German Leopard 2A6 tanks, later to be 2A7. The remaining 16 Dutch Leopard 2A6 Main Battle Tanks will be handed over to Germany.
The Brigades HeadQuarters as well as most of the units are located at the Johannes Post Barracks in Havelte, in the province Drenthe.
Organization
The 43 Mechanized Brigade is made up of the following units:
- 43rd Mechanized Brigade (43 Gemechaniseerde Brigade) in Havelte
- 43rd Staff Company in Havelte
- 414th Panzer Battalion, in Bergen (Mixed German/Dutch unit)
- 44th Armoured Infantry Battalion, Regiment Infanterie Johan Willem Friso in Havelte
- 45th Armoured Infantry Battalion, Regiment Infanterie Oranje Gelderland in Havelte
- 10th National Reserve Battalion with six companies in Assen, Wezep, Schaarsbergen, Stroe and Enschede
- 11th Armoured Engineer Battalion in Wezep
- 43 Brigade Reconnaissance Squadron, Huzaren van Boreel in Havelte
- 43rd Maintenance Company in Havelte
- 43rd Medical Company in Havelte
Equipment
- 97 Fennek armored reconnaissance vehicles
- 92 CV90 infantry fighting vehicles
- 48 Leopard 2A7main battle tanks
- 6 Fuchs CBRN reconnaissance vehicles
References
- ↑ The 43rd Gemechaniseerde Brigade at the Netherlands Ministry of Defence